Leading urban low-carbon transitions with digitalization and coordinating the construction of Digital China with the achievement of the “dual carbon” strategic goals are crucial measures for promoting high-quality economic development and realizing Chinese-style modernization.
Based on panel data from 279 prefecture-level cities between 2006 and 2021, this paper takes the “National Big Data Comprehensive Pilot Zone” strategy and the dual pilot construction of low-carbon cities as quasi-natural experiments, and employs a multi-period difference-in-differences method to empirically study the effects and mechanisms of the “dual pilot” policy on urban emission reduction and efficiency enhancement. The findings indicate that the “dual pilot” policy promotes urban emission reduction and improves green total factor productivity, that is, exerting the effect of urban emission reduction and efficiency enhancement; agglomeration effects and factor effects are important mechanisms for the “dual pilot” policy to achieve urban emission reduction, while technological effects are important mechanisms for achieving urban efficiency enhancement; environmental regulation, public environmental attention, and local government competition play positive moderating roles in the policy effects. Further research shows that the “dual pilot” effect is superior to that of the “single pilot” policy. The “National Big Data Comprehensive Pilot Zone” performs outstandingly in efficiency enhancement, while the low-carbon city policy performs outstandingly in emission reduction. Only the synergistic linkage of the two policies can release the dual dividend of emission reduction and efficiency enhancement.
This study provides a reference for how to balance emission reduction and efficiency enhancement in the low-carbon transition of cities, and offers new empirical evidence and policy insights for policy coordination and cooperation.
WANGW J, XIANGQ F. Adjustment of industrial structure and the potential assessment of energy saving and carbon reduction[J]. China Industrial Economics,2014,32(1):44-56.
SHAOS, ZHANGK, DOUJ M. Effects of economic agglomeration on energy saving and emission reduction: theory and empirical evidence from China[J]. Journal of Management World,2019,35(1):36-60.
SHAOS, FANM T, YANGL L. Economic restructuring, green technical progress, and low-carbon transition development in China: an empirical investigation based on the overall technology frontier and spatial spillover effect[J]. Journal of Management World,2022,38(2):46-69.
WANGF, WUL H, YANGC. Driving factors for growth of carbon dioxide emissions during economic development in China[J]. Economic Research Journal,2010,56(2):123-136.
CAID L, YANY, CHENGS L. Research on the impact of carbon emission subsidies and carbon taxes on environmental quality[J]. China Population, Resources and Environment,2019,29(11):59-70.
ZHANGK Z, WANGJ, CUIX Y. Fiscal decentralization and environmental pollution: from the perspective of carbon emission[J]. China Industrial Economics,2011,29(10):65-75.
LIB, PENGX, OUYANGM K. Environmental regulation, green total factor productivity and the transformation of China’s industrial development mode: analysis based on data of China’s 36 industries[J]. China Industrial Economics,2013,31(4):56-68.
QIUZ X, ZHOUY H. Development of digital economy and regional total factor productivity: an analysis based on national big data comprehensive pilot zone[J]. Journal of Finance and Economics,2021,47(7):4-17.
SHIY T, WANGX D. Can the establishment of a big data comprehensive pilot zone drive the digital transformation of enterprises: empirical research based on quasi-natural experiments[J].Studies in Science of Science,2024,42(7):1482-1492.
CHENQ F, TIANZ Z. Big data and urban innovation: evidence from a national-comprehensive big data pilot area[J]. Nankai Economic Studies,2023,39(7):90-107.
BUH, GAOY D, XUNZ. Can big data increase the labor income share: evidence from national big data comprehensive pilot zones[J]. South China Journal of Economics,2023,41(11):62-82.
SHENK R, QIAOG, TANR P. The construction of national-level comprehensive big data pilot zone and employment growth[J]. China Industrial Economics,2024,42(12):5-23.
GUOB N, WANGY, ZHANGH. Does digital economy improve urban air quality: quasi natural experiment based on national big data comprehensive pilot zone[J]. Journal of Guangdong University of Finance & Economics,2022,37(1):58-74.
WANGY F, TAOW Q. Influence and effect of China’s pilot low-carbon city initiative on urban green total factor productivity growth[J]. China Population, Resources and Environment,2021,31(6):78-89.
WANGF, GEX. Can Low-carbon transition impact employment: empirical evidence from low-carbon city pilot policy[J]. China Industrial Economics,2021,39(6):78-89.
[37]
谢伏瞻.论新工业革命加速拓展与全球治理变革方向[J].经济研究,2019,54(7):4-13.
[38]
XIEF Z. The direction of global governance adjustment in the context of accelerated expansion of the new industrial revolution[J]. Economic Research Journal,2019,54(7):4-13.
WUJ X, GUOZ Y. Research on the convergence of carbon dioxide emissions in China: a continuous dynamic distribution approach[J]. Statistical Research,2016,33(1):54-60.
LIJ L, XUB. Curse or blessing: how does natural resource abundance affect green economic growth in China? [J]. Economic Research Journal,2018,53(9):151-167.
[43]
CHENJ D, GAOM, CHENGS L, et al. County-level CO2 emissions and sequestration in China during 1997-2017[J]. Scientific Data,2020,7(1):1-12.
ZHAOT, ZHANGZ, LIANGS K. Digital economy, entrepreneurship, and high-quality economic development:empirical evidence from urban China[J]. Journal of Management World,2020,36(10):65-76.
BAIJ H, ZHANGY X, BIANY C. Does innovation-driven policy increase entrepreneurial activity in cities:evidence from the national innovative city pilot policy[J]. China Industrial Economics,2022,40(6):61-78.
WANGB B, QIS Z. Biased technological progress, factor substitution and China’s industrial energy intensity[J]. Economic Research Journal,2014,49(2):115-127.